Theatre (THEA)
THEA 100 - STAGE CRAFT
Short Title: STAGE CRAFT
Department: Theatre
Grade Mode: Standard Letter
Course Type: Lecture/Laboratory
Credit Hours: 3
Restrictions: Enrollment is limited to Undergraduate, Undergraduate Professional or Visiting Undergraduate level students.
Course Level: Undergraduate Lower-Level
Description: Introduction to materials, tools, and standard theatre production techniques. Theory and practice of scenic building and painting techniques, creation of props, sound support requirements, and running crew during performance. No Lab hours required.
THEA 101 - THEATRE TECHNOLOGY: COSTUME CONSTRUCTION
Short Title: THEA TECH: COSTUME CONSTRUCTON
Department: Theatre
Grade Mode: Standard Letter
Course Type: Lecture/Laboratory
Credit Hours: 3
Restrictions: Students with a class of Senior may not enroll. Enrollment is limited to Undergraduate, Undergraduate Professional or Visiting Undergraduate level students.
Course Level: Undergraduate Lower-Level
Description: Introduction to the materials, tools, and standard techniques of costume/clothing construction. Lab hours required. Special Permission of Instructor is required for Seniors to register.
THEA 102 - INTRODUCTION TO ACTING
Short Title: INTRODUCTION TO ACTING
Department: Theatre
Grade Mode: Standard Letter
Course Type: Lecture/Laboratory
Distribution Group: Distribution Group I
Credit Hours: 3
Restrictions: Students with a class of Senior may not enroll. Enrollment is limited to Undergraduate, Undergraduate Professional or Visiting Undergraduate level students.
Course Level: Undergraduate Lower-Level
Description: This is a class in the basic terminology and craft of acting. It will encompass voice and movement training, as well as basic technical theatre terminology and vocabulary for the actor. The course work will progress from ensemble/group work and individual exercises/ monologues to scenes. Space in classes is limited. Registration does not guarantee a place in class. The class roster is formulated on the first day of class by the individual instructor.
THEA 103 - THEATRE TECHNOLOGY
Short Title: THEATRE TECHNOLOGY
Department: Theatre
Grade Mode: Standard Letter
Course Type: Lecture/Laboratory
Credit Hours: 3
Restrictions: Enrollment is limited to Undergraduate, Undergraduate Professional or Visiting Undergraduate level students.
Course Level: Undergraduate Lower-Level
Description: Introduction to lighting and sound equipment, tools, and board operation. Theory and practice of lighting and sound materials, hang and focus, programming both sound and lights boards as well as introduction to projection elements. No lab required.
THEA 202 - COSTUME AND PATTERN DRAFTING AND DRAPING FOR STAGE
Short Title: PATTERN DRAFTING AND DRAPING
Department: Theatre
Grade Mode: Standard Letter
Course Type: Lecture/Laboratory
Credit Hours: 3
Restrictions: Enrollment is limited to Undergraduate, Undergraduate Professional or Visiting Undergraduate level students.
Course Level: Undergraduate Lower-Level
Prerequisite(s): THEA 101
Description: This course enables students to explore pattern-making, design, fit and alteration of costumes for the stage. The course will familiarize students with the draping method of pattern development and the flat-patterning method of pattern development in order to create three-dimensional period and contemporary costumes for the theatre based on two-dimensional research and theatrical designer drawings. Instructor Permission Required.
THEA 207 - MAKEUP FOR THE STAGE
Short Title: MAKEUP FOR THE STAGE
Department: Theatre
Grade Mode: Standard Letter
Course Type: Lecture/Laboratory
Credit Hours: 3
Restrictions: Students with a class of Senior may not enroll. Enrollment is limited to Undergraduate, Undergraduate Professional or Visiting Undergraduate level students.
Course Level: Undergraduate Lower-Level
Description: This is a hands-on class that explores the principals of stage makeup materials and skills, methods and techniques that are used in an actor's transformation for the stage. This includes techniques for moderate and extreme aging, injuries and character roles and period styles. Class will use the application of analytical and research skills in the visual development of the character. Spring 2021; Seniors must get special permission to enroll
THEA 238 - SPECIAL TOPICS
Short Title: SPECIAL TOPICS
Department: *Visual and Dramatic Arts*
Grade Mode: Standard Letter
Course Type: Internship/Practicum, Laboratory, Lecture, Seminar, Independent Study, Lecture/Laboratory
Credit Hours: 1-4
Restrictions: Enrollment is limited to Undergraduate, Undergraduate Professional or Visiting Undergraduate level students.
Course Level: Undergraduate Lower-Level
Description: Topics and credit hours may vary each semester. Contact department for current semester’s topic(s). Repeatable for Credit.
THEA 270 - BIG PAINTING: MATERIALS AND TECHNIQUES FOR THEATRICAL PAINTING
Short Title: BIG PAINTING FOR THEATRE
Department: Theatre
Grade Mode: Standard Letter
Course Type: Lecture/Laboratory
Credit Hours: 3
Restrictions: Enrollment is limited to Undergraduate, Undergraduate Professional or Visiting Undergraduate level students.
Course Level: Undergraduate Lower-Level
Description: Big Painting: Materials and Techniques for Theatrical Painting will examine the materials and techniques usually associated with scenic and theatrical painting but as applied to the context of 21st century contemporary art practices. Students will learn how to make big paintings. This course has limited enrollment. The roster is formatted on the first day class by the instructor, who may allow additional registration for majors. It is necessary to attend the first class meeting to confirm your place on the class roster. Cross-list: ARTS 270.
THEA 294 - THEATRE JUNIOR FIELD TRIP
Short Title: JUNIOR FIELD TRIP
Department: Theatre
Grade Mode: Standard Letter
Course Type: Laboratory
Credit Hour: 1
Restrictions: Enrollment is limited to Undergraduate, Undergraduate Professional or Visiting Undergraduate level students.
Course Level: Undergraduate Lower-Level
Description: This course is designed to help dramatic arts majors, in their third year of study, focus on the upcoming senior year of intensive work. The destination city will offer students the opportunity to visit theaters, museums and participate in meetings with creative professionals in their fields of study. Travel takes place during one of the University's official recess periods. Course may not be used in awarding transfer credit. Instructor Permission Required.
THEA 300 - INTRODUCTION TO THEATRE DESIGN
Short Title: INTRODUCTION TO THEATRE DESIGN
Department: Theatre
Grade Mode: Standard Letter
Course Type: Lecture/Laboratory
Distribution Group: Distribution Group I
Credit Hours: 3
Restrictions: Enrollment is limited to Undergraduate, Undergraduate Professional or Visiting Undergraduate level students.
Course Level: Undergraduate Upper-Level
Description: Introduction to the theory and practice of theatre design through exploration of the principles and elements of design as they apply to scenery, lighting, and costumes with an emphasis on text analysis and research. Students will complete and present a variety of projects.
THEA 301 - ACTING I
Short Title: ACTING I
Department: Theatre
Grade Mode: Standard Letter
Course Type: Lecture/Laboratory
Credit Hours: 3
Restrictions: Enrollment is limited to Undergraduate, Undergraduate Professional or Visiting Undergraduate level students.
Course Level: Undergraduate Upper-Level
Description: Introduction to the fundamentals of acting through the exploration of actor training techniques based on the theories of Stanislavsky, Strasburg, Adler, Meisner, and Hagen, emphasizing the actor's primary tools: voice, body, emotional life, and imagination.
THEA 302 - ACTING II
Short Title: ACTING II
Department: Theatre
Grade Mode: Standard Letter
Course Type: Lecture/Laboratory
Credit Hours: 3
Restrictions: Enrollment is limited to Undergraduate, Undergraduate Professional or Visiting Undergraduate level students.
Course Level: Undergraduate Upper-Level
Prerequisite(s): THEA 301
Description: Text analysis for the actor with particular emphasis on a thorough investigation of given circumstances and dramatic action. Students will work on scenes from Ibsen to contemporary playwrights.
THEA 303 - INTRODUCTION TO THEATRE
Short Title: INTRODUCTION TO THEATRE
Department: Theatre
Grade Mode: Standard Letter
Course Type: Lecture
Distribution Group: Distribution Group I
Credit Hours: 3
Restrictions: Enrollment is limited to Undergraduate, Undergraduate Professional or Visiting Undergraduate level students.
Course Level: Undergraduate Upper-Level
Description: A survey course of the art and theory of the theatre through an examination of dramatic literature and theatrical venues from the Greeks through the modern era. The course will also explore the craft of the theatre from a practitioner's point of view as it is realized today. Requires attending several theatre productions in local Houston venues. Cross-list: ENGL 390.
THEA 304 - COSTUME DESIGN
Short Title: COSTUME DESIGN
Department: Theatre
Grade Mode: Standard Letter
Course Type: Lecture
Credit Hours: 3
Restrictions: Students with a class of Senior may not enroll. Enrollment is limited to Undergraduate, Undergraduate Professional or Visiting Undergraduate level students.
Course Level: Undergraduate Upper-Level
Description: Exploration of costume design and the designers' role in the collaborative process. Students will present design projects that explore character, storytelling, and the relationship between performer and audience. Students will experiment with rendering techniques to explore the visual language of period and contemporary clothing. Seniors must obtain special permission of the instructor before enrolling.
THEA 305 - LIGHTING DESIGN
Short Title: LIGHTING DESIGN
Department: Theatre
Grade Mode: Standard Letter
Course Type: Lecture/Laboratory
Credit Hours: 3
Restrictions: Enrollment is limited to Undergraduate, Undergraduate Professional or Visiting Undergraduate level students.
Course Level: Undergraduate Upper-Level
Prerequisite(s): THEA 300
Description: Exploration of the role that lighting plays in a production and the lighting designer's place as an artist in the collaboration process. Emphasis on the practical application of the controllable properties of light as they apply to theatre. Students will be required to complete a variety of projects including light labs responding to music and culminating in a final lighting project.
THEA 306 - SCENIC DESIGN
Short Title: SCENIC DESIGN
Department: Theatre
Grade Mode: Standard Letter
Course Type: Lecture/Laboratory
Credit Hours: 3
Restrictions: Enrollment is limited to Undergraduate, Undergraduate Professional or Visiting Undergraduate level students.
Course Level: Undergraduate Upper-Level
Prerequisite(s): THEA 300
Description: Advanced examination of the principles of scenic design including research, rendering, technical drawing, model construction, text analysis and the role of the scenic designer in collaboration with directors, actors, and other designers. Students will read and analyze a variety of plays in different periods and styles, and then, based on text analysis and research, complete and present design projects.
THEA 307 - HISTORY OF ARCHITECTURE, INTERIORS, AND CLOTHING FOR THEATRE DESIGNERS
Short Title: HIST FOR THEATER DESIGNERS
Department: Theatre
Grade Mode: Standard Letter
Course Type: Seminar
Credit Hours: 3
Restrictions: Enrollment is limited to Undergraduate, Undergraduate Professional or Visiting Undergraduate level students.
Course Level: Undergraduate Upper-Level
Description: HISTORY OF ARCHITECTURE, INTERIORS, AND CLOTHING FOR THEATRE DESIGNERS ***** Survey of the major period styles of buildings, homes, furnishings, and clothing from ancient Egypt through the 20th century including a critical analysis of the interdependent nature of the evolution of design and the relationship to the cultures in which they were created. Repeatable for Credit.
THEA 308 - IMPROVISATION FOR STAGE AND SCREEN
Short Title: IMPROV FOR STAGE AND SCREEN
Department: Theatre
Grade Mode: Standard Letter
Course Type: Lecture/Laboratory
Credit Hours: 3
Restrictions: Enrollment is limited to Undergraduate, Undergraduate Professional or Visiting Undergraduate level students.
Course Level: Undergraduate Upper-Level
Description: This is a course in the practical training of comedic, long-form, improvisation. Students will learn how to craft scenes spontaneously using tools like character dynamic, status, comedic pattern, beat structuring, and agreement. Classic forms of scenic improv will be taught and the course will also examine the role of improvisation in comedy films, video, and the creation of sketch comedy. Students will get to practice their skills by crafting videos in the class' culmination run of improv shows. Cross-list: FILM 308.
THEA 309 - MUSICAL THEATRE STUDIO
Short Title: MUSICAL THEATRE STUDIO
Department: Theatre
Grade Mode: Standard Letter
Course Type: Lecture/Laboratory
Credit Hours: 3
Restrictions: Enrollment is limited to Undergraduate, Undergraduate Professional or Visiting Undergraduate level students.
Course Level: Undergraduate Upper-Level
Description: Practical training and experience in musical theatre performance. This course will focus on the particular challenges that musical theatre presents as distinct from non-musical theatre. Performance techniques will emphasize the skills necessary for successful presentation of a musical number by an actor, as well as how to prepare an effective audition. Previous singing experience required
THEA 310 - THE SPOKEN TEXT
Short Title: THE SPOKEN TEXT
Department: Theatre
Grade Mode: Standard Letter
Course Type: Lecture/Laboratory
Distribution Group: Distribution Group I
Credit Hours: 3
Restrictions: Enrollment is limited to Undergraduate, Undergraduate Professional or Visiting Undergraduate level students.
Course Level: Undergraduate Upper-Level
Description: An exploration of language through voice, movement and text as one of the actor's primary means of communication and expression. The student will analyze, rehearse, and perform scenes from the work of William Shakespeare and his contemporaries.
THEA 311 - HISTORY OF MUSICAL THEATRE
Short Title: HISTORY OF MUSICAL THEATRE
Department: Theatre
Grade Mode: Standard Letter
Course Type: Seminar
Credit Hours: 3
Restrictions: Enrollment is limited to Undergraduate, Undergraduate Professional or Visiting Undergraduate level students.
Course Level: Undergraduate Upper-Level
Description: This course is designed to familiarize students with the repertoire of a uniquely American art form that has had a widespread cultural influence. It will present a historical perspective of the decades of musical theatre from the 1920s to the present, with particular emphasis on representative innovative examples of change and the transition from musical comedy into musical theatre.
THEA 312 - DIRECTING I
Short Title: DIRECTING I
Department: Theatre
Grade Mode: Standard Letter
Course Type: Lecture/Laboratory
Credit Hours: 3
Restrictions: Enrollment is limited to Undergraduate, Undergraduate Professional or Visiting Undergraduate level students.
Course Level: Undergraduate Upper-Level
Prerequisite(s): THEA 301
Description: An introductory course exploring the tools and craft of the stage director. Students will learn how to analyze dramatic text and will gain a fundamental knowledge of the director's basic skills, including composition, picture, movement, rhythm, and pantomimic dramatization. Recommended prerequisite(s): THEA 303 or 300.
THEA 314 - PUPPETRY DESIGN
Short Title: PUPPETRY DESIGN
Department: Theatre
Grade Mode: Standard Letter
Course Type: Studio
Credit Hours: 3
Restrictions: Enrollment is limited to Undergraduate, Undergraduate Professional or Visiting Undergraduate level students.
Course Level: Undergraduate Upper-Level
Description: An exploration of puppetry design, including the history of puppets and puppet styles. Students will create their own puppets by immersion into original character design and expanding on their practical capabilities by building a table top puppet. The students will work with a variety of materials, including leather, hooks, fabric, yarn, fur and fake hair.
THEA 315 - THEATRE IN WESTERN CULTURE: A HISTORICAL INTRODUCTION
Short Title: INTRO TO THEATRE HISTORY
Department: Theatre
Grade Mode: Standard Letter
Course Type: Seminar
Distribution Group: Distribution Group I
Credit Hours: 3
Restrictions: Enrollment is limited to Undergraduate, Undergraduate Professional or Visiting Undergraduate level students.
Course Level: Undergraduate Upper-Level
Description: Through reading and watching a selection of major plays and exploring other primary historical and critical sources, students in this course will study the development of the western dramatic tradition from ancient roots to modern day. Students will explore how the theatrical experience reflects and effects the society in which it exists and will consider how theater holds a mirror up to cultural power, taboos, and changes.
THEA 323 - VOICE AND SPEECH FOR THEATRE
Short Title: VOICE AND SPEECH FOR THEATRE
Department: Theatre
Grade Mode: Standard Letter
Course Type: Lecture/Laboratory
Credit Hours: 3
Restrictions: Enrollment is limited to Undergraduate, Undergraduate Professional or Visiting Undergraduate level students.
Course Level: Undergraduate Upper-Level
Description: Development of an expressive speaking voice through awareness and overcoming physical and vocal habits and limitations, including alignment, relaxation, breath support, resonance, tone and projection. Recommended prerequisite(s): THEA 301.
THEA 324 - MOVEMENT FOR STAGE AND STAGE COMBAT
Short Title: COMBAT & MOVEMENT FOR STAGE
Department: Theatre
Grade Mode: Standard Letter
Course Type: Lecture/Laboratory
Credit Hours: 3
Restrictions: Enrollment is limited to Undergraduate, Undergraduate Professional or Visiting Undergraduate level students.
Course Level: Undergraduate Upper-Level
Description: Introduction to body dynamics and stage combat through partner exercises, physical stretching and conditioning, ensemble movement, full body awareness, focus, action and counter-action, precision, and economy of effort. Recommended prerequisite(s): THEA 301.
THEA 325 - ACTING FOR FILM
Short Title: ACTING FOR FILM
Department: Theatre
Grade Mode: Standard Letter
Course Type: Lecture
Credit Hours: 3
Restrictions: Enrollment is limited to Undergraduate, Undergraduate Professional or Visiting Undergraduate level students.
Course Level: Undergraduate Upper-Level
Prerequisite(s): THEA 102 or THEA 301
Description: This course provides an introduction to the art of acting on camera. It emphasizes specific techniques of speech, movement, character development, and the creation of relationships as they relate to the recorded medium (film, television, commercials, industrial films). The elements of study include proper voice placement, appropriate acting styles, and subtlety in performance. Student performances will be videotaped for study.
THEA 330 - CONTEMPORARY DRAMATIC LITERATURE
Short Title: CONTEMP DRAMATIC LITERATURE
Department: Theatre
Grade Mode: Standard Letter
Course Type: Lecture
Credit Hours: 3
Restrictions: Enrollment is limited to Undergraduate, Undergraduate Professional or Visiting Undergraduate level students.
Course Level: Undergraduate Upper-Level
Description: In this course we will examine contemporary American plays that have had a significant impact on theatrical form or that are highly reflective of contemporary society. Playwrights whose work will be studied will include Mamet, Guare, Lucas, Wilson and many others.
THEA 331 - THEATRE PRODUCTION
Short Title: THEATRE PRODUCTION
Department: Theatre
Grade Mode: Standard Letter
Course Type: Studio
Distribution Group: Distribution Group I
Credit Hours: 3-6
Restrictions: Enrollment is limited to Undergraduate, Undergraduate Professional or Visiting Undergraduate level students.
Course Level: Undergraduate Upper-Level
Description: Practical application of skills acquired in previous THEA courses in a realized Theatre Program production as a company member. Admission to class requires either an audition, interview, or portfolio review with the director and/or production manager. Possible roles include: actor, assistant director, stage manager, assistant stage manager, designer, and technical support in scenery, costumes, lighting, or sound. Prerequisites: permission of instructor. Instructor Permission Required. Repeatable for Credit.
THEA 333 - SPECIAL PROBLEMS: THEATRE PRODUCTION
Short Title: SPECIAL PROBLEMS: THEATRE
Department: Theatre
Grade Mode: Standard Letter
Course Type: Independent Study
Credit Hours: 1,2
Restrictions: Enrollment is limited to Undergraduate, Undergraduate Professional or Visiting Undergraduate level students.
Course Level: Undergraduate Upper-Level
Description: Study of problems at the intermediate level in theatre making. Topics may vary. Please consult with your faculty advisor for additional information. This class may be used in awarding transfer credit. Instructor Permission Required. Repeatable for Credit. Instructor Permission Required. Repeatable for Credit.
THEA 396 - THEATRE INTERNSHIP
Short Title: THEATRE INTERNSHIP
Department: Theatre
Grade Mode: Standard Letter
Course Type: Internship/Practicum
Credit Hours: 1-6
Restrictions: Enrollment is limited to Undergraduate, Undergraduate Professional or Visiting Undergraduate level students.
Course Level: Undergraduate Upper-Level
Description: This course is a field-based, supervised, professional learning experience designed to enhance classroom learning. Students will be responsible for identifying and securing internship positions and must obtain permission from the department chairman and have a department faculty sponsor. All interns are required to keep an internship journal recording duties and activities; the journal will be used as the basis of a five-page paper summarizing the internship experience. Documentation of the work produced during the internship is required, portfolio, CD, DVD, etc. Instructor Permission Required. Repeatable for Credit.
THEA 408 - ADVANCED IMPROVISATION FOR STAGE AND SCREEN
Short Title: ADVANCED IMPROVISATION
Department: Theatre
Grade Mode: Standard Letter
Course Type: Lecture/Laboratory
Credit Hours: 3
Restrictions: Enrollment is limited to Undergraduate, Undergraduate Professional or Visiting Undergraduate level students.
Course Level: Undergraduate Upper-Level
Prerequisite(s): THEA 308
Description: This is an advanced course in the practical training for students who already understand the basics of how to craft scenes spontaneously using tools like character dynamic, status, comedic pattern, beat structuring, and agreement. Class will challenge students to explore more professional level long form improvisational structures, such as the Harold and improvised musicals. Students will be given the opportunity to participate in professional level improvisational performances hosted by a few of Houston’s finest professional improvisational theatres. Students will get to showcase their skills culminating in a run of performances on the Rice Campus.
THEA 432 - SPECIAL PROBLEMS: DIRECTING AND DESIGN
Short Title: SPEC PROB: DIRECT & DESIGN
Department: Theatre
Grade Mode: Standard Letter
Course Type: Independent Study
Credit Hours: 1-3
Restrictions: Enrollment is limited to Undergraduate, Undergraduate Professional or Visiting Undergraduate level students.
Course Level: Undergraduate Upper-Level
Description: Independent study. Instructor Permission Required. Repeatable for Credit.
THEA 435 - SPECIAL PROBLEMS: ADVANCED TOPICS
Short Title: SPEC PROB:ADVANCED TOPICS
Department: Theatre
Grade Mode: Standard Letter
Course Type: Independent Study
Credit Hours: 1-6
Restrictions: Enrollment is limited to Undergraduate, Undergraduate Professional or Visiting Undergraduate level students.
Course Level: Undergraduate Upper-Level
Description: Independent study. Instructor Permission Required. Repeatable for Credit.
THEA 477 - SPECIAL TOPICS
Short Title: SPECIAL TOPICS
Department: *Visual and Dramatic Arts*
Grade Mode: Standard Letter
Course Type: Independent Study, Internship/Practicum, Laboratory, Lecture/Laboratory, Lecture, Seminar
Credit Hours: 1-4
Restrictions: Enrollment is limited to Undergraduate, Undergraduate Professional or Visiting Undergraduate level students.
Course Level: Undergraduate Upper-Level
Description: Topics and credit hours may vary each semester. Contact department for current semester's topic(s). Repeatable for Credit.